EF 50mm f/1.2 or Costa Rica

[anthony_bridges]

<p>This season Santa can give me either airlines tickets for Costa Rica in March or the 50mm f/1.2. I mainly shoot portraits and landscapes. I already have the ef 50 f/1.8, 85 f/1.8 and the 70-200 f/2.8 for protraiture. </p>

<p>What would you do? Say hi to red eyed tree frogs or smooth 50mm bokeh?</p>

[jean_yves_mead]

I'd go to Costa Rica. A lens on its own doesn't make for particularly interesting experiences.

[mike dixon]

Travel.

[esfishdoc]

<p>Costa Rica.... the 50 1.2 will always be the same and always available...</p>

[rjtully]

<p>I would say "I'm outta here!"</p>

[Lou_Meluso]

<p>Take the trip, no brainer.</p>

[jpk]

<p>IMHO - definitely Costa Rica... :-)<br>

A lens - it's just another piece of glass, I don't expect much better results than using 85/1.8</p>

[William Kahn]

<p>Ditto all of the above.</p>

[David_Cavan]

<p>At the end of this year do you want to say "I'm glad I went to Costa Rica", or "I'm glad I got a new lens". Personally I'd be looking at the year's photos thinking how great it was to have some photos of of Costa Rica.</p>

[evan_goulet]

<p>I have to say, I thought there was a typo in the post title: "EF 50mm f/1.2 <em>for</em> Costa Rica?" That would be a question up for debate, but with "<em>or</em>" there, to me it is clearly travel to Costa Rica. Those frogs may not be there forever.</p>

[dan park]

<p>I'll be in Costa Rica next month. Buy a *sigmalux instead and go travel. </p>

<p> </p>

[luis_g]

<p>I'd choose Costa Rica over the lens in a heatbeat.</p>

[brian_wallace5]

<p>Travel - no questions asked. </p>

[phule]

<p>Costa Rica, of course.</p>

[noreen]

<p>What They Said.</p>

[mark_pierlot]

<blockquote>

<p>Those frogs may not be there forever.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Sadly true. Ironically, plane travel may hasten their demise. :-(</p>

[User_6667263]

<p>Pack your passport and go...</p>

[tarek_wazzan]

<p>the 50 1.2 of course....<br>

just kidding..... please!...</p>

[ant_nio_gomes]

<p>Do you still need more pieces of advice?<br>

Better you start organizing your travel plan.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>You might be able to find a Nikkor 55mm f/1.2 lens and a cheap adapter, and have both.:)<br>

With your other lenses, I think the manual operation of the f/1.2 lens would be jes' fine for the cases where you need that bokeh and speed.</p>

<p>Otherwise, another vote for the tree frogs.</p>

[green_photog]

<p>Apparently, people here are not photographers. How can a true photographer resist the feeling of dense brush metal of the 50 f1.2 against bare skin in a cold dark winter's night? Not to mention the intense satisfaction of holding a lens the size and weight of a small water melon and the fascination of looking into the myriad glass reflection calling your soul to sink deeper and deeper into the abyss.<br>

The lens all the way for me.</p>

[nathangardner]

<p>CR, maybe get the 50mm f/1.4 if you're Jonesin' for a new lens. Unless you really have a need to shoot at f/1.2, the L really isn't worth the extra dough. </p>

[john_bellenis]

<p>I'm not a fan of the f1.2 lenses in the first place... they're heavy, slow and just excess baggage unless you're shooting at f1.2 in which case you have paper thin DOF. How many white picket fences do you really want to shoot, or portraits that look like everyone else's that made a similar overpriced purchasing decision? If you just want a purchased effect buy a lensbaby or two for much less.</p>

<p>But travel? Now you're talking, real life experience as opposed to equipment fondling?! This one is a no brainer and the easiest Pnet question to answer that I've seen!</p>

[thomas_k.]

<p>Take the lens and enjoy smooth bokeh around your house. Bokeh is to be found everywhere you can get it not even moving from your armchair. Photograph your toes with smooth f1.2 mush around them, and there is coffee cup on the table, donut crumbs on the floor, fuzzy balls of pet or human hair, dry leaves blown in from the outside, pizza boxes, shower curtains...really there is no reason to leave the house.</p>

[tarek_wazzan]

<p>"<em>Apparently, people here are not photographers. How can a true photographer resist the feeling of dense brush metal of the 50 f1.2 against bare skin in a cold dark winter's night?"</em></p>

<p>mmm... interesting defenition of a true photographer...</p>